Dr Rohan Khandelwal - NEET Surgery PG Updates

A surgeon’s inner sanctum
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No matter whatever chaos is going on the outside, once I enter the OT as a surgeon, a sense of calmness prevails. It’s like entering your inner sanctum and being at peace with yourself.
To get this kind of feeling in the OR is one of the most important lessons for a budding surgeon.

When one enters surgery residency, the initial OR exposure is during the wee hours of night in the emergency OT, where adrenaline ( due to excitement & multiple cups of tea/ coffee) pull you through the entire night but as you start getting more exposure in the elective OR’s with your mentors, you realise that proper breathing, a calm mind leads to a steady hand in the OR for longer periods of time & materialises into better operative results.

This is something which every surgeon should work on and achieving this state is a gradual process which can take many years but is definitely worth it as it ensures better results & longevity of surgical career.

Those who are planning to take up surgery as a career option, there are certain virtues which you will have to inculcate to become good surgeons:

1. Surgery is a way of life - some of you must have seen the movie ‘Karate kid’ in which the sensei (teacher) tells the student that karate is not only about kicking and punching. It’s reflects in everything you do the entire day. The same is with surgery. Yes, what’s done in the OT is important but it’s not the only aspect.

2. Discipline - a very important virtue for the surgeon. Best to start working on it since residency. Whether it’s related to your health, eating habits, etc - you need to be disciplined

3. Never shy away from hard work - I meet a lot of young surgeons in the private setup who think surgery is all about what is done in the OT. I always tell them, that the surgery part is easy. The hard part is to communicate with the patient; to counsel them before and after surgery and to deal with the complications (which are bound to happen when you operate).

4. Don’t be afraid to take decisions - my teacher always used to say that ‘start taking decisions early in life, so even if you are wrong you have time to learn from them and move on.’ An indecisive person can rarely be a good surgeon.

Hone these skills during residency. Talk to patients, do the boring scut work, dressings and all of them will put you in a better position in your career.

Those preparing for NEET PG should also watch the recall at 2x speed. Some of the questions were really good and can be asked in the PG exams also.

https://youtu.be/uniQVK67Z2A

Internship completion cut off for NEET PG 2023 - March 31st 2023
Detailed prospectus is out! Exam on 5th March